The Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy has been all around the world, but it's finally back in Beantown after the Boston Celtics captured their first title in over 16 years.
One of Larry's first stops was in the historic North End neighborhood in Boston. Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla was spotted carrying around the trophy in the streets on Wednesday, catching the attention of plenty of fans.
The Celtics felt like they were on the verge of a championship for multiple years, but they kept coming up short. Then Boston's front office made major offseason moves that shifted the team from a contender to a superpower. The C's added two-time All-Star Jrue Holiday and 2018 All-Star Kristaps Porzingis last summer and instantly saw returns.
During the 2022-23 season, Boston went a respectable 57-25. This year with Porzingis and Holiday implemented into the starting lineup, the Celtics were 64-18 and owned the best overall record in the league. Their historic regular season resulted in their highest win total since the iconic 2007-08 season, which saw them go 66-16 and win it all in six games over the rival Los Angeles Lakers.
The fact that the 2023-24 Celtics even approached that stellar win output is a testament to how dominant they were all year. In the 2024 NBA Playoffs, they posted an insane 16-3 overall record. None of their postseason series were longer than five games and they were just one win short of sweeping the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals.
Defeating the Western Conference champion in just five games is still an amazing feat. In previous years, Boston struggled to close out weaker opponents at times. Yet the signs of the old Celtics were absent in 2024, as they beat the Miami Heat in five games, eliminated the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games, embarrassed the Indiana Pacers in four games, and prevailed over the Mavericks in five games.
“It was a joy watching the guys just grow as a team throughout the year but also like really work at it,” Mazzulla said of his team following Game 5 of the Finals. “Like, there's a group of guys in the locker room that decided they wanted to win day one, and credit to them.”
For every single Celtic outside of Holiday, 2024 was their first ring. It was a long time coming for the majority of the C's, so they're definitely going to enjoy themselves for the time being.
Where else has the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy been?
After securing a title in Beantown on Monday night, some of the Celtics flew out to Miami the next day.
Larry, of course, was along for the ride to South Beach:
Boston has had several playoff battles with the Heat in recent years, so Celtics star Jayson Tatum likely enjoyed bringing the championship trophy to their city. Given that Boston and Miami have met in four of the last five postseasons, it seems inevitable that the rivalry between the two franchises will continue to grow.
Where the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy is headed next is no secret. The Celtics will all be back in Boston on Friday for the parade. It begins at 11 AM EST on Causeway Street, the home of TD Garden.
The celebration will wrap up at Hynes Convention Center in front of thousands of excited Celtics fans.
Prior to the Green Team cutting down the nets this June, no Boston team had won a title in over five years. During that period, the Boston Bruins were one victory short of a championship in 2019 and the Celtics were two wins away from one in 2022.
Since Boston was so close to a title for numerous years before finally getting over the hump, the parade crowd should be extra elated on Friday. A preview of the pandemonium in store was on display on Boylston Street on Thursday afternoon, as veteran center Al Horford stopped by Raising Cane's for a promotional event that was attended by hundreds of fans who waited for hours for a glimpse of the newly minted champion.
Clearly, Larry should expect quite a warm welcome on Friday.
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